Cushion tie-plate.



J. A. BODKIN. CUSHION TIE PLATE. APPLICATION FILED APRJO, 1914.

Patented Dec. 1, 1914.

sharpened to form JOHN A. BODKIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

CUSHION TIE-PLATE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 1, 1914:.

Application filed April 10, 1914. Serial No. 830,865.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. BODKIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, county of New York, State of New York, have invented'a certain new and useful Improvements in Cushion Tie-Plates, and declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention has for its object to produce a simple and novel tie plate construction which may be supplied to the railroads as units complete in themselves and, when secured in place beneath the rails will cushion the rails and, to a large extent, will deaden the noise produced by a car or train passing 'over the rails.

The Various features of novelty whereby my invention is characterized will hereinafter he pointed out with particularity in the claims; but, for a full understanding of my invention and of its object and advantages, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tie plate arranged'in accordance with a preferred form of my invention; Fig. 2 is a transverse section on an enlarged scale, showing the plate in position upon a tie; and Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, on a smaller scale, showing a different form of my invention.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, 1 represents a plate of spring metal slightly bowed and having the edges, 2 and 3, which are parallel with the elements of the curved surface bent downwardly and prongs adapted to be driven into the wood of a tie to secure the plate firmly to the tie. On the under side of the plate, between the prongs I secure a cushioning layer, 4:. This cushioning layer or pad may be made of cloth, hair cloth, leather, felt, or any other resilient substance, and it may be made ofa-single layer or of a plurality of layers. Where the cushion or pad is made of a plurality of layers, the several layers are cemented togetherby any suitable cement, pitch or coal tar product that will not harden or crack; or, if desired, some rubberoid composition of the kind now commonly used in roofing materials, may be employed. The cushion or pad itself is permanently attached to the plate by an adhesive element or composition of the kind described.

The cushion is applied to the tie plate before the latter is delivered to the railroad so that when the workmen receive the tie plate they place it in position in just the same way as any ordinary ti'e plate and are not required to adjust the cushion or pad and, in fact, have nothing to do with the cushion or pad and there is therefore no danger that the latter will in some cases be omitted. The cushion pad is housed within the prongs and is therefore exposed to the weather only at two edges of the tie plate, so that there is little danger of deterioration through the action of the weather.

The tie plate is placed upon the tie with its prongs running in the direction of the grain and the prongsare then driven into the wood without destroying the fiber of the wood. The bowed plate itself forms a cushion, but it is greatly assisted. in its cushioning efi'orts by the pad between it and the tie and, furthermore, this pad deadens the noise and makes the track practically silent under a running train. The plate itself need not be bowed, because the cushion may be employed to advantage with tie plates of any ordinary kind. Thus in Fig. 3 I have illustrated an ordinary flat tie plate, (3, having securing ribs or prongs, 7. and 8, and a cushion, 9, similar to the cushion 1 secured to the under side of the plate between the prongs and, if desired, projecting outwardly to the edges of the plate if the prongs lie at some distance from the edges.

I claim:

1. A railway tie plate having a cushion cemented to the under side thereof.

2. A railway tie plate having cemented to the under side thereof a cushion composed of a plurality of layers of fabric secured together.

3. A railway tie plate having on the under side separated sharpened feet or flanges adapted to enter the tie, and a cushion cemented to the underside of the plate between the feet or flanges. v

4. A railway tie, plate of spring metal having its edges bent down and sharpened for the purpose of entering a tie, and a cushion cemented to the under side of the plate between the bent-down edges.

5. A railway ham/mg lts edges for the purpose 01 e 'ti a plains 01" spring mam-1 bent (1mm and sharpened} ntering a tie, the body 01 the plats being bowed s0 as to afiord a yieldable support fer a menmd 430 the under mild, and a cushign cem? the plate Tw- J QHN A. BGDKIN.

E G. ZIMMZERMAN, WA M. LARmN. 

